Assam minister and BJP's important leader in the northeast Himanta Biswa Sarma said he was "pained" that the West Bengal chief minister whom he "respects a lot" was "dragging his name" in a scam without stating the "facts". He dismissed the charge made against him by Mamata Banerjee that there was "evidence" of his involvement in the multi-crore Saradha chit fund scam as "frivolous and baseless".